A Memory of My Life
by Chi21
Summary: Kairi is back on the Destiny Islands, five years after KH. Riku has since returned, along with Sora, and the threesome set out for other worlds again...
1. Prequel

A Memory of My Life  
  
As told by Kairi  
  
By Chi21  
  
R&R, please!  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts.  
  
Sora, Kairi, and Riku are back on the Destiny Islands. Five years after the restoration of the Destiny Islands, Sora and Riku develop a taste for adventure once again. Kairi would like to see the other worlds for real, without having to play princess. The three friends set out with optimism and yearning. However, the raft gets caught in a storm before reaching another island. Riku makes it to the next world, and Sora climbs back on the raft to ride out the storm. But Kairi is thrown underwater, down to the sharp rocks...  
  
**********************************  
  
Prequel:  
  
Riku stood up on the small raft to see just about how far the shore was.  
  
"We're only about a mile away."  
  
Kairi turned around, her long crimson hair whipping in the wind. "I can't wait!"  
  
"Are you going to go shopping?" Sora asked her, smiling.  
  
"Only to get everyone a souveneir."  
  
"I bet."  
  
"Uh, oh," Riku said quickly.  
  
"What?" Kairi asked, looking at his face, partially hidden by his platinum blonde hair.  
  
"Look up," Sora told her. Kairi did, and she saw that the sky was turning gray.  
  
"Come on, we have to get to the shore before it hits the ra-" Kairi's franctic paddling and hurried words were split by a clap of thunder. Sora cursed and pulled out an oar to help Kairi.  
  
"We won't make it," Riku said matter-of-factly.  
  
"We have to try," Kairi countered.  
  
"No, save your strength for trying to swim to shore," Riku looked at Kairi very seriously, and she didn't bother argue with this 20-year old she cared so much for after a look like that. So she just nodded and pulled her windbreaker closer to her skin.  
  
"Are you cold?" Sora asked, putting his arm around her. Kairi cuddled closer to him. "You'll be fine. You're a great swimmer." Kairi blushed and looked away. Sora continued staring into her face, and that faraway look in her eyes reminded him of how much he loved her.  
  
"Kairi, when we meet at the shore, I want to-" Sora's words were cut off by a sudden down pour of rain. Lightning struck, and the vast, deep ocean was lit up from its grayish blue to a brilliant yellow. Kairi thought for a split second before saying,  
  
"The lightning will-" her words were also broken with a surge of pain that shot through her body. She vaguely remembered gasping for air and fighting the force of the raging sea, Riku calling her name. The only other thing she could recall was her figure being swallowed up by the angry water and violently sinking down. Her head hit something hard and sharp, and she heard her own voice cry out in pain before blacking out completely.  
  
* * * * * This is the Prequel, to be followed by chapters. Hehe, just figured I would catch your attention... Please review! 


	2. A Painful Awakening

A Memory of My Life  
  
As told by Kairi  
  
By Chi 21  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts.  
  
Chapter 1: A painful awakening.  
  
Where am I?  
  
"She is waking up." Who said that? I opened my eyes. I was laying in soft sand, and there were people circled around me. My head hurt. I reached up to touch it, even though a lady told me not to. My fingers touched something wet. I looked at my hand. It was covered in water, as were my clothes, and it had a small amont of blood on it. I looked up at the sky. There were some clouds, but the sun was coming out. A streak of lightning flashed in my mind. I gasped.  
  
"Calm down," Someone said, trying to push me back down. He had on a black jacket and also had two or three belts slung over his pants.  
  
"Don't touch me!" I screamed. I stood up and jumped over a woman who had dark hair and bright eyes. I ran down the beach and eventually found myself on a road. I saw a hospital and went in. The man was there. I turned around and sprinted in the other direction. I walked into an inn and waved to the woman who apparently owned it. She smiled warmly at me, until she saw my hair was streaked with blood.  
  
"What happened?" she exclaimed. Without waiting for an answer, she pushed me into another room and shut the door. Then she pulled out a cloth and put some warm water on it. She patted my wound with the towel until it was cleaned up.  
  
"How do you feel now?" She asked.  
  
"A little better," I replied.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry. I was so worried I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Aeris."  
  
"Hello, Aeris. I'm... I am..." Who was I? I couldn't remember. It sounded like... K... K... This was so humiliating!  
  
"You... must've hit your head hard. Do you remember what happened?" The brown haired lady asked, concentrating on my face. The lightning flashed in my mind again, but that was all I could remember.  
  
"I'm sorry... I don't know."  
  
"Well, hopefully we will get to see some of your friends. Maybe some townspeople can help you out. Do you remember if you were with anybody?"  
  
"I remember a flash of lightning... and then all these people surrounding me. But... other than that, I can't recall anything."  
  
"Maybe you should get some rest. I'll make dinner later on, and you can meet my husband. He went to pick our kids up from the beach," Aeris told me. I sighed, realizing I still didn't know who 'me' was. Then a spark of hope lit up in my mind.  
  
"Wait! The beach. I remember being at a beach. I was laying in the sand when I woke up," I said excitedly.  
  
"We'll ask Cloud when he gets in," Aeris offered, straightening out her pink dress.  
  
"Cloud?" I asked, starting to feel kind of stupid.  
  
"My husband," she replied. She went to walk out the door, but then turned around. "The beach? Do you remember if you... came here from somewhere else? And if you had any other people with you?"  
  
"I think, we came here... from some other place. There were two people very important to me, also," I said, thinking hard. "I hope they're alright," I added. Where did that come from? I didn't mean to say that. This brought a surge of acomplishment, although I didn't know why.  
  
"Good! I hope they come here." Aeris smiled.  
  
"Of course they'll come here. This is the best-known inn in the whole of Traverse Town."  
  
"Hello, honey," Aeris said, greeting a blonde haired young man with a boy in one arm and a girl in another.  
  
"This is Cloud." Cloud smiled, and waved. He didn't bother to ask my name, for which I was glad. He gave the little boy to Aeris, who reached for his mother's arms.  
  
"Mommy! Mommy! Naomi and I made a samcastle!" The little boy hugged Aeris and tugged on her hand. He looked like he was only four years old.  
  
"It's called a sandcastle, not a samcastle, Timmy," the girl named Naomi corrected him. Cloud put the young girl on the floor, so she could hug her mother as well. Seeing the little girl embrace Aeris pulled a little envy into my heart. This little girl, though she was only six or seven and I was... older, knew more than me. She knew her name, as well as her family's. She even had a mother and father to look after her. Of these I had none, not even the ability to recall what happened that morning. The lightning flashed again. Ironic, isn't it, that we want so much to grow up, as I assumed I had, but now look at me- I only have the glimpse of a memory that lasted but a split second. I pondered these thoughts until I heard Aeris' voice again.  
  
"Are you going to join us for dinner?" she invited me.  
  
"Yes, I suppose I will." I wondered what I would wear. This led me to an even larger question- what did I look like? I laughed out loud, and Aeris looked at me as if to question my sanity.  
  
"What's so funny?" she asked curiously.  
  
"Just- I just thought, I don't even know what I look like. I'm... I'm still sane, if that's what you're thinking," I said, feeling more and more desperate by the minute. Aeris gave me a knowing smile.  
  
"I think you look pretty," Naomi said. I grinned. Or at least, I think I did.  
  
"Yeah! Pwetty!" little Timmy chimed in.  
  
"Alright. Into the dining room," Aeris told them.  
  
Aeris made a delicious meal, with chicken and potatoes and vegetables. Over dinner, she explained my situation to Cloud. Then she served us this fruit she called a paopu. I tasted a little piece, and nostalgia swept through my mind.  
  
"This fruit, it reminds me of something... something special, from the past," I told her. Her eyes lit up.  
  
"Well, please, help yourself. I have more."  
  
I ate another piece, begging my brain to remember something- anything.  
  
"Well, the sky sure seems to be clearing up," Cloud said off-handedly. The sky...  
  
"Sky... something is very familiar about that, too. Sky, sky... S- so- Wait! It's coming to me. So- ra! Sora! I think I remember him. He was with me today, I think," I told them.  
  
"Sora? We met him, didn't we honey? Years ago." Aeris seemed as though she couldn't remember much about him herself. I ate another piece of paopu.  
  
"Is there anything special about this fruit?" I asked. Something was screaming in my mind about this fruit.  
  
"Why, yes there is, actually. It's supposed to intertwine the destinies of two people if they share it," Aeris said, providing me ample information to retrace a lost memory.  
  
"Let's share a paopu," someone said. Sora? "Okay." That was me, I think. "It's good," the other person commented. "Yeah. Hey, Sora?" I was right! "What?" "I love you."  
  
"Sora and I... shared a paopu. A long time ago, on a beach. I don't know why, I just know," I told the couple.  
  
"Well, I believe Sora had told me he was trying to save the girl he loved, when I talked to him last. He was sealing the keyholes," Cloud informed me.  
  
"Keyholes?" I asked. Aeris put her hands to her head.  
  
"I'll explain everything in the morning," she offered. "Until then, we all need to rest.'' I picked up my plate, ready to take it to be washed, if I remember correctly. Which wasn't very reliable at the moment.  
  
"Oh, no, no, no," Aeris said, taking my plate out of my hands. "The maids will get them." I followed her into the lobby. She sat behind the desk, waiting for business, while I sat on a chair with my legs crossed. I had no idea why I did that, either. I just did it. Then my jaw dropped. A longhaired platinum blonde boy stepped in. His blue eyes landed on me, striking another flash back.  
  
"If it weren't for you, I wouldn't even have thought about this. Kairi, thanks." Doing what? Kairi! That was my name! "Hehe. You're welcome," I replied. I was just a girl, still in my early teens.  
  
The boy. The silver hair. His name was... Riku.  
  
"Kairi!" the boy said. He ran over to me and wrapped his arms around me. I gave Aeris a helpless look. This boy seemed so relieved to see me, yet I knew I was going to break his heart with my one question.  
  
"Who... are you?" I asked. The boy looked at me, gazing at me with wonder in his eyes.  
  
"What are you talking about?" he asked, completely confused.  
  
"Are you... R-Riku?" I questioned timidly.  
  
"Yes. That would be me, Riku, the boy you've know since you were five years old. Me." Riku pointed to himself as if he thought I couldn't speak English.  
  
"Yes, yes. Okay. I'm sorry. I...don't remember much about anything... Not even my own name. But seeing you helped me to remember it." I looked happily at Aeris. "It's Kairi."  
  
"What do you mean, you don't remember anything?" Riku looked at me as if he couldn't believe he was standing in the lobby of the inn, as if he didn't believe this was happening. He saw my hair.  
  
"I hit my head. I think. But I do remember being on a beach, with people everywhere."  
  
"Aeris, what is going on here?" he asked Aeris. She shrugged.  
  
"Your guess is as good as mine." She looked hopelessly at Riku.  
  
"Wait. Kairi, do you remember anything about a storm? Or a boy named Sora?" Riku searched my face. I knew somehow that this boy- who was hardly a boy- cared about me alot, and it pained me to hurt him just by not knowing what happened to me. A storm? The lightning flashed. Sora? The paopu.  
  
"Yes, I remember lightning. I remember Sora, I think. B-brown. Brown hair." I stumbled over my words, trying to sound truthful and not so hopeful.  
  
"Yes. Sora. And the storm, well... We have to find Sora." Riku looked at me with urgency in his eyes.  
  
"Find him? Why? What happened to him?" I asked the questions quickly, trying to sound as though I was worried (which I was, for a reason I didn't know) and not stupid.  
  
"We were on a raft. We were only about a mile away from the shore."  
  
"We're only about a mile away," "I can't wait!"  
  
"Yeah... I remember."  
  
"Then the sky got all dark. We tried to get to shore, but then lighting struck the water. You went under really fast, and neither Sora or I could get you. We were just about drowning ourselves," Riku said, his turquiose eyes misty in recollections. "Sora was really fed up with himself- we both thought... you were gonna die. I'd never seen him try so hard for anything. But you had disappeared in the water, so he got back up and paddled to shore. At least, I think he did. Really soon after I was on my way in swimming, it got all foggy. I couldn't see more than a few feet ahead of me. When I got to the shore, I just laid there, exhausted. I fell asleep. I woke up a few hours later, and I figured I would look for you and Sora. I found you, I just hope Sora's okay."  
  
"I'll come back for you! I promise!" "I know you will!"  
  
"Me, too," I said, once again on impulse, not knowing why I said it. Sora loved me. I knew it. I started to remember everything, although my thoughts were thick with blank spaces. I felt like I was in the middle of a mystery, like a puzzle. I knew little things, but I needed to fit the rest of the pieces in.  
  
"Why don't we talk more in the morning? We could both use some rest." I nodded, and Aeris showed Riku and I to our rooms. Our seperate rooms, I noticed.  
  
"Something wrong?" Aeris asked. I shook my head and thanked her for the meal and all her help. She gave me one of her nightgowns, for which I was eternally grateful, and shut my door. I changed out of my damp clothes and layed down on the bed. I drifted off into sleep almost immediately.  
  
"Welcome to the Island." "I told you, I don't remember." "Soon, Kairi, soon." "Sora, you lazy bum. I knew I'd find you out here." "One, two, three, go!" "Kairi!" "Sora! You came back, just like you promised." "I can't wait to leave the island." "I'll remember you. Always, Sora. Always."  
  
I woke up to the sunlight streaming through the window of the room. I pondered my dreams. Had they all been memories of my life? I recalled telling Sora I'd remember him. I was never a liar. Or was I? I hoped not. But I couldn't even keep my promise to Sora. The one I loved. I think.  
  
There was a knock on my door.  
  
"Come in," I called. Aeris brought in a breakfast of eggs and toast with butter. There was also a bowl of jelly and a glass of fresh orange juice.  
  
"It's nothing special, but I figured you might want to have some time to think."  
  
"Thanks, Aeris. You've been so much help and so patient."  
  
"I have to." She looked very seriously out the window, and I wondered what she was thinking.  
  
"Why?" I asked. She didn't answer, but she just stood up.  
  
"I hope you enjoy your meal," she told me. She shut the door on her way out.  
  
A few minutes later, there was another knock on my door. Aeris came in. In her hand was my clothes from yesterday.  
  
"Oh, Aeris. You didn't have to do that."  
  
"Well, I felt bad that I didn't give you clothes earlier. So I washed your outfit," she told me. I realized this was another kindness, but I just smiled. She left.  
  
About five minutes after that, there was a third knock on my door. I thought for a minute.  
  
"Come in, Aeris." Riku walked in instead.  
  
"Wrong," he told me, smiling. I hadn't seen him smile yet. I loved it. I giggled, and then I realized I liked his sense of humor, too. I couldn't believe it, but I thought I was falling for Riku. But what about Sora?  
  
"Well? When?" he asked me.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry. I was thinking about um, er, um... other things. What were you asking me about?" I smiled at Riku.  
  
"I said, when do you want to find Sora?" he repeated.  
  
"Um, why don't we look for him... um once we are ready after.... um, breakfast?" I wondered if I was a leader before. I wondered... if I had liked Riku before.  
  
"That's great," he replied. He smiled at me before he left. The second he shut my door, my face broke into a brilliant smile. He was so sweet... I wished I could've remembered more about him. (Of course, I had forgot all about his trip to the darkness...) I wondered if, maybe... he had liked me?  
  
I climbed out of bed and picked up my outfit. It was a longsleeved pink top with a short black skirt. I had a lace choker and black boots. I recalled something about a pink bow, but I didn't remember much. So I took a pink ribbon out of the curtain holders. I braided my long hair and tied it with the ribbon. Then I saw myself for what seemed to be the first time in a full length mirror. I liked what I looked like, and I was pleased with the braid and outfit. I went into the hall to see if Riku was ready when I heard something outside. I ran back in and looked out my window. There was a little black thing crawling around and a boy attacking it with a weapon that resembled a key. The boy had brown hair. Suddenly, with a start, I realized the truth. Sora.  
  
* * * * * * * Yeah, I know. Traverse Town doesn't really have a beach. But in this story it does, ok?! Also there is no longer a hotel, but an Inn. Aeris' inn. Let me know how I'm doing, k? Reviews are very welcome... 


	3. Remembering Sora

Chapter 2- Remembering Sora  
  
A Memory of My Life  
  
As told by Kairi  
  
By Chi21  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts.  
  
Chapter 2: Remembering Sora.  
  
I ran out into the hall, bumping right into Riku. I blushed, probably more than I should've, and grabbed his hand.  
  
"Come on, we have to go," I rushed urgently.  
  
"What- I thought we were going to find Sora-" he stammered, as I dragged him down the stairs.  
  
"We don't have to look. He's outside on the street," I informed Riku. He stopped me and put one of his hands on each of my shoulders. He stared at my face.  
  
"You mean, you saw him?" I nodded. "And you recognized him?"  
  
"Yeah. Look, I'll talk later. He's in trouble."  
  
"How can you tell?" I pulled Riku out into the street, where Sora was still struggling with the black thing. Only now, there were more of them. Riku dashed out to where Sora was swinging the large key. Wait- I knew what it was called! If only I could remember. Something... sharp? Swords, maybe?  
  
"Sora!" Riku called, and Sora turned around to face him. The little black thing (which I recalled a few minutes later was called a shadow) took advantage of his momentary distraction to grab a death grip on Sora. Riku pulled out his own.... um, sword-key-thingy, and did this powerful looking spin that slashed three uh er, shadows. The rest of them closed in, and Sora finally managed to rip off the little guy that was almost permently stuck to his face. Sora did some incredible moves of his own, ending with a beautiful spiraling leap. The last shadow made a puddle of black on the ground. Riku and Sora looked at the black puddles in victory.  
  
Sora twirled his... (keyblade!)... oh, yes. Keyblade. He twirled his keyblade and then sheathed it.  
  
I got my first look at him since the storm. His clothes were dark, but his eyes... They were so calm, like the ocean. He looked at me, and at that moment he stared at me like he could see right inside me, like he could feel my pain and frustration, all my feelings.  
  
My eyes filled with tears, for some reason. Maybe it was because I knew... I knew somehow I wouldn't be the Kairi he remembered because I didn't know who I was or how I acted.  
  
My fears and worries vanished in the next moments, although they did return. Sora strided my way and put his arms around me. I felt so calm there, like I wanted to stay there forever. With a wave of emotion came another sweet memory...  
  
"Sora... why didn't you come back to me?" I ran through the waters, remembering Sora when he was 14 and missing him. It had been so long since I had seen him... I couldn't live without him. I needed him, but I began to realize the truth- Sora wasn't coming back. He and Riku had been gone for four years... But I still missed them so. If I could only see them for a moment-  
  
"Kairi!" Sora's voice called. I knew it was his voice. But... I didn't believe it. I thought I had heard him call my name so many times, only to turn around to an empty ocean scene and to sleep on the sands of the moonlit horizon, alone.  
  
"Kairi!" I couldn't take it anymore- that voice!  
  
"Stop it! Stop tormenting me! Why can't I..." I could not finish my words, for they were replaced by a flow of tears. Until someone.. touched my shoulder. I only dared to hope-  
  
"Kairi, it's alright. I'm here for you. And I always will be." I turned, and there was Sora- before my very eyes. I touched his face... just to see... if he was...  
  
He held my hand in his.  
  
...real?  
  
"I'm here, Kairi. I came back." I knew it now, he wasn't a dream!  
  
"Sora! You came back, just like you promised." I was still crying. But now my tears were happy ones.  
  
"Of course, I told you I would." Sora hugged me. I hugged him back. I stared out at the rippling waters, overjoyed to have him back. "Kairi?" he asked. His voice was still the same, but deeper.  
  
"Hmm?" I replied, still wondering if this was a dream. When Sora said nothing, I looked up, as if to make sure he was still there. His eyes were bright and sparkling, and they reflected the moon that was trembling on the water.  
  
"I love you," he whispered softly, just before he kissed me.  
  
"Sora, I'll remember you. Always, Sora. Always." My voice was hushed by the romantic wind that swept over the sands, brushing my pale skin as Sora held me in his arms as he never had before...  
  
"I'm so... sorry. Do I know you?" I asked, puzzled.  
  
"What, what are you talking about? Kairi, this is not the time to joke around. We have to find a-" I cut off Sora's words.  
  
"Wait a minute. I think I do know you. Your name is... Sora, right?" I looked into his eyes with all seriousness. His expression changed, the short-lived glimmer of hope mixed with urgency changed. He'd seemed so calmed and relieved to see Riku and I again, but now a new fear arose in his heart. I knew it.  
  
"Kairi, you're- you're not joking, are you? You really don't..." his voice trailed off, as if it did not allow or want him to finish his sentence. His eyes fell to his hands, his hands that held mine so gently and passionately with a shimmer of care. "...remember me." His last words were so depressing and sad, like all life was lost from him. Like every beaming ray of hope was shattered.  
  
"Sora, there are things you must understand," Riku chimed in. I was grateful he had spoken, as I did not have any words to speak. Although my heart went out to Sora, I could do nothing to comfort him. I felt another pain strike my heart as I realized I was the cause of Sora's grief. I prayed that he would not be too upset, since there was nothing I could do about the situation. My eyes thanked Riku silently, due to the fact that I could not do so out loud in front of Sora.  
  
"Kairi, I- I heard what happened. I didn't know what to do. All this time, on my way to shore- which I do not know how I got there, for I was left unconcious- I thought of you and, and what could have happened. I figured Riku could get by okay, but even so, I was concerned about him. I woke up in the middle of the night, after having many dreams about my friends, friends I feared... I would never see again."  
  
I couldn't help myself. I ran over to Sora, who had stepped over in his shock of my trauma, and wrapped my arms around his neck. I was on the verge of tears again.  
  
"Oh, Sora! Please, we must do something... to remember- er, for me to remember everything. I want to. I want to think of all of us as little kids, of younger teens... which reminds me, how old am I?" I asked him curiously.  
  
"You're nineteen. Just like me. Riku is-"  
  
"Twenty," Riku finished for him. "Look, we were going to go out to find you, but since Kairi found you and led me to you, well..." Riku's voice trailed off, leaving the obvious unsaid. There was nothing to be said. But of course, Sora didn't think so.  
  
"You mean, you saw me and recognized me?" Sora asked me. I nodded, smiling. He smiled back. I noticed Riku's eyes shift a little, so I told my friends I would be looking around the town for some good stores to shop in.  
  
Sora looked alarmed, and stopped me, quickly arguing, "You can't leave. I- I lost you once, and.. There are more heartless, those shadowy things, out there. It won't be safe. You can't-"  
  
"I'll go with her." Riku's eyes played with the golden sun reflecting off of them. Was it just me, or...  
  
I began to wonder if, just maybe, there was something going on here? That I might not want to know about?  
  
* * * * * * * * Ok, so this chappie had a really stupid end. Oh, well... Please Review, my readers! 


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